Rapid advances in mobile phones and cellular communication technologies have lead to an increase in the types of services offered to customers and end users. For example, it is commonplace for a subscriber to a cellular telephone network service to be provided with Internet access, text messaging capabilities, voice messaging, and video media transmission capabilities. Most cellular network service providers also offer their customers access to a “411” directory service that provides users with telephone numbers of a listed business, person, or other establishment. A user who dials 411 is typically connected to an Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system or human agent that attempts to solicit the geographic location and name of the person or establishment, and then either directly connects the user with the listed number or audibly speaks the number to the user, who then must write it down or commit the number to memory.
Because mobile users are often performing tasks that preclude close attention and the ability to write (e.g., driving), the user of the directory service may not be able to remember the spoken number, or may not write it down correctly. In cases where the service dials the number for the user, the conversation with the called party may get dropped in the middle of the call. In these situations the user usually must repeat the entire process of dialing 411 to again request the same phone number, often incurring another directory service fee and a significant delay before reconnection occurs.